A New Kind of Companion Miniseries Part 1
by readandwrite4evernever20
Summary: A sequel to A New Kind of Companion,a Twilight crossover,please read it first. Brianna is sucked into a paradox causing her to regenerate.She ends up in the middle of Human Nature with her memories gone and a mysterious fob watch.So close and yet so far.
1. Time Lady Nature

(Brianna's Point of View)

Leaning against an ancient tree, I stared up into the leafy canopy above. I had no idea where I was, who I was, or _when_ I was. It was odd that I was wondering what time period I was in. I mean, you stay where you're born, right?

I jumped when I heard gunshots in the distance. Was there a war going on? I held my scrawny arm out in front of me. My sleeves were singed around the edges, and much too long and baggy. Were these clothes even mine? Had I stolen them?

I took a step forward, and teetered sideways, crashing into a tree. Why did I feel so unfamiliar with my body?

After several failed attempts at walking, I finally made it to the edge of the forest, and realized where the gunshots were coming from. Several men and boys were firing guns at targets. It was only for practice; there was no war. Yet. I had no idea if this place was in the middle of war, not really.

I called out to the men, but they didn't hear me. Stumbling, I made my way towards them. A boy with blond hair saw me and tapped on a tall man's shoulder. The man followed the boy's pointing finger, concern filling his face.

The two ran to help me, each supporting one side. "Miss?" the man pressed, "Who are you? Have you had too much to drink?"

"Are you suggesting that I'm drunk?" I cried indignantly, a little surprised by the higher tone of my voice. Why would I be surprised by the sound of my own voice?

The boy glared angrily at the man. "Mister Smith, I highly doubt that a woman like her would drink too much alcohol." He faced me, a gentle smile on his lips and a lighter note in his words, "Aren't I right? What is your name? I'm Timothy. Timothy Latimer."

"I d-don't know," I stammered, "I just… woke up in the forest. I don't even r-remember how I got there. I'm alone and sc-scared."

The man frowned. "Miss, you look ill. Why don't you come with us and the school nurse will look you over."

The concerned look in their eyes convinced me that they were only worried about me, and meant no harm. I reluctantly agreed to go with them into the school. As I passed, a tall boy with dark brown hair swiveled his head around and stared at me. A chill ran through my body as his nostrils flared, as if he was sniffing the air.

"Don't mind Baines," Timothy laughed, "he's always been a bit queer. More lately than before, though."

I tried to smile and ignore Baines, but I didn't feel comfortable until we were inside the great walls of the school.

I lurched forward, feeling an intense pain in my entire body once again. Timothy and Mr. Smith caught me before my head hit the floor, but I still got a few bruises on my legs and arms. I observed in wonder as the bruises glowed softly and healed almost instantly.

Neither Mr. Smith nor Timothy noticed, however, as they were discussing some other matter that was unimportant to me. We arrived at the nurse's office, and she welcomed us in warmly, an extra large smile given to Mr. Smith. By the way he smiled back I could tell that they were in love. Why did I feel a bit jealous?

Timothy held my hand as the nurse checked me over for any major injuries, but there were none. She pulled a stethoscope out of a drawer and listened to my heartbeat. She frowned. "My, her heartbeat is much faster than it should be. But that might just be due to the shock… wait, what's this? _Two hearts_? That's impossible!"

"Two hearts?" Mr. Smith echoed uncertainly, "Are you sure, Joan?"

She narrowed her eyes and handed him the stethoscope. "Of course I'm sure! Listen to them yourself!" He did so, recoiling with horror.

"But—what does that mean, Joan?"

She groaned. "It means she's got to hearts! Some birth defect, I'm sure. Well, she's made it this far that way, I'm sure she won't drop dead now."

My hands flew to my chest, and I felt for the second heart I hadn't known was there. Mr. Smith and the nurse went out into the hall, leaving Timothy and I alone.

Tears began to well in my eyes. "Who am I?" I sobbed softly, and Timothy squeezed my hands soothingly.

"I can't answer that. But I can tell you that you are the most beautiful girl that I have ever met, and I'd really like to get to know you better."

I looked into his eyes, tears beginning to roll down my face. "Timothy, we can't be together like that. I don't even know who I am. I've got _two_ hearts, Timothy! What if that means I'm going to die soon? What if that's why I lost my memory in the forest? Who knows?"

He shook his head. "No, don't say that. Don't think that way. We can make it work!"

I was about to answer when pain seared through my entire body, and I fell out of the chair and to the cold floor. There was a sort of heat about to make me explode. I opened my mouth to scream, but instead of sound, the heat flowed out in a glowing stream. Timothy stared, his mouth gaping, as the light disappeared into the air.

I gasped for air, as Timothy put his hands around my shoulders, helping me to my feet. "I don't care what kind of illness you have. I'll help you get well again. I promise."

"Tim—" I was interrupted by shouting in the hall. "Joan! Get the kids out of here!" The nurse burst into the room, pulling us through the second door in the back of her office. We ended up in a small room with several beds, probably an infirmary. Still further down the chain of rooms was her quarters, which finally led to a hallway.

"What's happening?" I asked as we crept through the quickly darkening hall.

"Keep quiet!" she scolded, ignoring my question.

Timothy glanced apologetically at me. I couldn't help but smile back.

"Oh, look, the Time Lord's in love with a human," sneered a voice from the shadows. The boy called Baines stepped into the dim light, sniffing the air again.

He smiled evilly, and called out, "Father of Mine! Mother of Mine! Sister of Mine!"

I narrowed my eyes, studying him. A heavyset man with a large mustache appeared at the other end of the hallway, trapping us.A tall boy with dark hair strolled into the dark hallway, nostrils flaring as he sniffed the air. A short, plump, woman and a small girl with a balloon followed. They all had the same evil grin on their faces.

"I thought it was a man we were looking for," the little girl said in a monotonous tone.

The boy sniffed again. "Come now, Sister of Mine, smell her. A Time Lord, for sure. There must be two."

"Time Lord? Baines, I knew you were a bit off, but now you're just talking nonsense!" Timothy snorted.

The man chuckled darkly. "What, she hasn't told you? Your little girlfriend here is an alien. An alien who we've been looking for. If you just let us have her, then we'll let you leave without further consequence. Now step aside."

Timothy stood firmly in front of me, acting as my shield. "Liars," he spat.

I put one hand on his shoulder. "Timothy, that name, Time Lord, it sounds familiar in some way. Maybe they're not lying. "

Mr. Smith came clambering down the hall, behind the woman and the little girl. "What is going on here? 'Quit your acting'; what's that supposed to mean? And why are you scaring these poor children?"

The short woman rolled her eyes. "My, it is quite entertaining watching these two. One made himself human, the other has no idea who or what she is."

"What are you talking about?" both Mr. Smith and I demanded at the same time.

The nurse clung to Mr. Smith, trembling. Timothy continued to shield me. The four stood in our way, cutting off both escape routes. But suddenly, Timothy reached into his pocket and retrieved a golden pocket watch with elegant engravings. He tossed it to Mr. Smith, who caught it and stared at it with little interest. "Tim, you stole my watch?" he sighed, "I thought I was teaching you better than that."

Out of the corner of my eye I detected slight movement in the hall, right behind Baines and the man. A woman in a maid's uniform snuck up behind them and whacked them both on the head with a mop. Smiling triumphantly, she charged at the woman and girl next.

"Martha!" Mr. Smith reprimanded, "You know I don't approve of violence!"

She rolled her eyes. "Well, _they_ do, and they were about to attack all of you, I saw one of them reach for their blaster. Could you just open the watch and get on with it?"

He raised his eyebrows and pocketed the watch. "Ah, cultural differences. Martha, you really have to start adapting your ways…"

She glared icily at him. "Enough of that! OPEN the watch, Doctor!"

He frowned. "Doctor? I thought I was being friendly, sharing my dreams with you, and now you use them to tease me!"

Joan grabbed Timothy and I by the arms and dragged us down the temporarily unguarded hall to an exit. Once outside, the clear night air seemed to calm my mind and settle my worries. Those people were just lunatics, after all, they accused Mr. Smith of not being human and he seemed to be the most normal one there.

We made it to the trees before the four came into sight, chasing after us. There was a good distance between us, but they were still a danger.

As I looked over my shoulder, I failed to ahead of me. I collided with a blue box, about big enough for one person to fit inside of.

"Get in!" Martha instructed, holding the door open. As we stepped inside, I felt a part of me waking up. Memories surging back.

_A short blond woman exploring the TARDIS for the first time in wonder. Becoming a Time Lord. Crashing into the wall inches from the door right before the Doctor proposed to her. Rushing into the TARDIS after their wedding, nearly forgetting her mum and Lily. The loose pipe; her first regeneration. Edward and Bella in the TARDIS. Watching Bella's past, and gaping in horror as Edward altered it. Vanishing from beside the Doctor. The near-fatal trip through a time vortex. Regenerating seconds after landing in the forest. Finding the forest and trying to use the chameleon arch like the Doctor, but failing due to the excess regenerative energy; instead, her memories had been accidentally erased. Stumbling out into the forest, alone and scared. _

In seconds, I saw my entire life story in my mind, but it was like watching a movie; I was detached from the action, truly just an observer. I zipped to the TARDIS controls, throwing back levers and using the small mallet to whack down a small plastic mole. I wasn't really sure what purpose the mole served. As I adjusted the various dials, Timothy followed behind me, taking in my every move.

"What are you doing?" he fired questions at me every few seconds, "What is this place? How is this all possible? How do you know what to do with this thing?"

"Timothy, would you give me a moment, I'm a little busy saving your life," I snapped at him. He recoiled, shocked.

"Hate to break it to you, but I'm married," I added, a quick flash of my ring proving my statement. I returned to the controls, using a joystick-like controller to steer the TARDIS away from the Family of Blood's second-rate ship.

The Doctor stood in a corner staring around with a giddy grin. "It's the blue box! Bigger on the inside, just like my dream!"

"Doctor, do a friend a favor and open the stinking watch already," I groaned. He sighed and pulled out the watch, fiddling with the clasp for a moment before it popped open, releasing a stream of light and energy.

I hurried to the Doctor and my room (just the Doctor's in this time) and found his trench coat, pinstripe suit, and converse strewn about the floor. I scooped them up and handed them to him, and he gladly changed out of his stiff schoolteacher attire.

Joan sat with Timothy, both looking extremely unhappy and confused. With one quick flip of a switch, I created a temporary black hole, which would disappear right after it consumed the Family. They would live forever, in the nothingness of the black hole.

Once we were safe, I sat cross-legged on the TARDIS floor with Timothy. "I'm sorry, Tim, I really am. I honestly didn't remember anything about who I was before. I didn't remember anything about the Doctor. He's my husband, you know. I'm older than I look. See, we're both Time Lords, the very last. This is the TARDIS, the Doctor's-oh, sorry, he's Mr. Smith to you-time and space machine. We travel together, we save whole planets and galaxies when they're in trouble. And then, once a year or so, we're lucky and get a slow, uneventful day to just sit and enjoy the galaxy together, maybe go sight-seeing. But we're soul mates: meant for each other. You'll find that someone, too, I'm sure of it. You too, Joan. You're welcome to stay, but I'm assuming you'd like to get back to your lives…"

They both nodded, a bit reluctantly. But I knew this would happen. Those two, they needed order and sense in their lives. A life of time travel with the Doctor could never provide that for them.

Now it was Martha, the Doctor, and I.

"Who are you, anyway?" Martha asked curiously, as the Doctor wandered around the TARDIS. He had really missed his little blue box.

I held out my hand to shake. "Brianna Smith-Tennant, at your service. Actually, not, because I'll be leaving now… do you happen to know where the Doctor keeps the vortex manipulator? You know, the one that straps on like a watch?"

"No," Martha admitted, "But he keeps everything by letter, I think. Try looking with the Viking souvenirs and that awkward Valentine Jack made."

"Ah, he still keeps things alphabetized. I haven't reorganized it by year yet! It was so confusing this way…"

Ten minutes later, I was still throwing various v-related items over my shoulder. Finally, at the very bottom of the trunk, I found the vortex manipulator.

I strapped it onto my wrist and waved goodbye to Martha. "Tell him I'll give it to a friend who'll return it. I really have to go before a major paradox occurs. Thank you so much for keeping him safe!"

I dematerialized, and I swore that I could hear the Doctor questioning Martha about my whereabouts.

All she said was, "Doctor, what's your last name?"

"Smith," he told her.

"You're bloody kidding me, she really was...


	2. Turn Right:Touched by an Angel

**Though I use lines and the story idea from the Doctor Who episode Turn Left, I do not claim ownership. All that I own is Brianna. But not really, since she is a real person… the only Doctor Who item I actually own is a TARDIS made out of blue and red duck-tape... it was a gift from the real Brianna… onward with the story, then!**

Brianna stared curiously around the marketplace she had landed in. She had no clue what planet she was on; she had intended to go to Earth. Irritated, she checked the screen on the vortex manipulator, realizing her own mistake. She had set it for the wrong coordinates, only one number off from London. Catching a whiff of some exotic food, Brianna decided to stay a while and explore.

Brianna followed the delicious smell, arriving at a small stand selling some sort of pastry filled with purple goo. Always the adventurous sort, Brianna accepted a free sample, thoughtfully taking a bite as she strolled through the crowd.

Suddenly, a voice beside her said, "Tell your fortune, dear? Your future predicted, your life foretold?"

Brianna raised her eyebrows suspiciously, regarding the fortune teller with slight distaste. She really had no patience for people who pretended to know the future. Brianna much preferred going to see it for herself, anyways.

"Thank you, but I really have to go," Brianna said politely, trying to edge away from the woman in sparkly garb.

The woman stopped her. "Oh, but don't you want to know if you'll be happy?" the fortune teller asked mysteriously.

"I'm happy, thanks… or at least I will be soon," Brianna assured her.

"Oh, but readings are free for teenagers," the woman added.

Brianna was about to point out that she was most certainly _not_ a teenager when she remembered that her latest regeneration was considerably younger than the last. Hey, it was free. "Aw, why not?" Brianna gave in, following the woman into her burgundy tent.

Brianna nearly choked on all the incense. The woman took her hands in her own, closing her eyes. "You're quite fascinating. Oh, but you're good. I can see a man…" Brianna's eyes widened. "…The most remarkable man. How did you meet him?"

Brianna smiled mischievously. "You're supposed to tell me."

The woman shook a finger. "I see the future. Tell me your past. When did your paths cross?"

Brianna sighed, remembering. "It's sort of complicated. I appeared right next to him, moments after he fought off a whole army of Daleks single-handedly."

There was a faint clicking noise in the corner of the tent. Brianna attributed it to a clock, and paid it no further attention.

"But what led you to that meeting?" the woman pressed.

"Oh, a Weeping Angel sent me forward in time. Sounds ridiculous, doesn't it?" Brianna laughed, then stopped when she realized that the woman's face remained serious.

"What choices led you to the Weeping Angel?" the woman asked anxiously.

Brianna thought for a moment. "Oh, breaking up with my boyfriend Matt, I suppose. He would've taken me back if I had apologized, but I decided he wasn't worth it." Brianna's face darkened a bit with the mention of Matt.

The fortune teller's eyes shone. "Your life could have gone one way or another. What made you decide?"

Brianna shrugged. "Dunno, I just did."

The woman took Brianna's hands even more tightly. "But when was the moment when you decided?" she urged.

Brianna had a brief flashback of standing in the doorway of Matt's apartment, back when she had been blond.

"_Don't do this, Brianna. You'll only regret it in a day's time. You always do. Just admit that you're wrong and we'll go back to the way everything was before."_

_Hot tears slid down her face, and she could feel herself trembling. She glanced down the long hallway. She could leave now, and never have to put up with him again. But a tiny voice in her head begged her to apologize for something she hadn't done, just so that she could cling to him like a safety net._

"_Yes, because the way that things were before was so perfect; you went and did whatever you fancied, and I had to always be little miss perfect girlfriend. Your double standards, your lies, and don't think I don't know about that girl you dated behind my back; I can't take it anymore!" she took a deep breath, turning on her heels. "So long, Matt. I'm leaving."_

The fortune teller shook Brianna's hands, now staring intensely into her eyes. "But what if you had apologized? What if you had stayed with him?"

Suspicion swirled in Brianna's mind, making her wary of the woman. "Let go of my hands," Brianna ordered shakily.

"What if it changes? What if you went back? What if you could still go back?" the woman hissed.

"Stop it!" Brianna shouted, growing more fearful by the second. She froze. "What's that? What's on my back?"

The woman grinned evilly. "Make the choice again, Brianna Smith, and change your mind. Go back."

Brianna sat, transfixed, and dreamily breathed, "I'm going, I'm going…"

"Go back, go back!" the woman hissed.

Brianna stood, trembling in Matt's doorway.

"Don't do this, Brianna. You'll only regret it in a day's time. You always do. Just admit that you're wrong and we'll go back to the way everything was before."

Brianna's resolve flickered and faded away. "You're right," she sighed, slowly stepping towards him, "I'm sorry. I need you. Please, please, _please_ take me back."

"_Go back, and never meet that man. Go back and change the world!"_

He smiled, and held his arms out. She wiped the tears from her eyes, and pressed herself against his chest, letting him place his arms around her waist.

(A year later)

Brianna and Lily sat in a crowded coffee shop, sipping their tea and chattering excitedly.

"Let me see it!" Lily beamed, gesturing towards Brianna's hand.

Brianna flashed her engagement ring, simple silver with a small white diamond in the center. She smiled half-heartedly. "Yeah, Matt wants to have the wedding in March. We're thinking somewhere around the 13th."

Lily grinned mischievously. "And who's the lucky maid of honor?"

Brianna laughed. "You, of course! I wouldn't have anyone else!"

Lily gave Brianna a strange look, peering over her shoulder. "What's on your back?" she asked Brianna.

There was a sudden crash outside, and Lily and Brianna bolted out the door to see what was happening. A lonely blue police box stood on the corner of the street, but that wasn't the disturbing part: a menacing stone angel had its clawed hands wrapped firmly around a man's throat. Brianna gasped in horror, and shoved through the growing mob to get a better look. The man, tall and skinny with spiky brown hair, was clearly dead, and his body hung limp beneath him.

A blond woman, shoved her way through until she stood beside Brianna. The woman was distraught, tears streaming down her cheeks. "It was too fast for him to regenerate," she mumbled. Suddenly, she turned her head, and saw Brianna, who was feeling unreasonably desolate. "You knew him, too?" the woman gently questioned.

Brianna shook her head, dazed. "Um, no, actually I didn't. But I can tell he was a good man—a very good man."

The woman nodded, a sad smile on her lips. "Yeah, he really was. He wasn't supposed to die. Things weren't supposed to happen this way. He had just finished fighting off a whole army on his own, and then was drawn here for some reason. Someone else was supposed to be touched by that angel…"

She suddenly glanced at Brianna's back, mildly distracted. Brianna looked self-consciously over her shoulder and saw nothing. "Why're you looking at my back?"

The woman averted her eyes, shaking her head. "I'm not."

Brianna turned in a little circle, straining to see her lower back. "What, did somebody put a sign there? What's it say?"

"No, nothing there," the woman assured her, a little uncertainly.

"Brianna! Be careful!" Lily called. Brianna tilted her head to see her short friend through the crowd, but gasped when she reverted to her former position. The woman was gone. "Well, that was odd," she whispered to herself.

(March)

Brianna waited in a small room, her wedding gown flowing out beneath her. Everyone told her how lucky she was to be marrying a man like Matt. They didn't see how he was when he was alone with her after a bad day at work.

Matt was a dentist, who was often bitten by small children. He was very good at what he did, which was why he was so successful now. He hadn't allowed Brianna to get a job; besides, with his income, she didn't need one. Still, she longed to have a good reason to get out every day.

She heard the organist warming up, and Matt's snobbish sister Claire popped her head in. "Matt wanted to see you. Why, I'll never know," she sneered. If Claire wasn't twelve, Brianna would've punched her in the face right then and there. Instead, she sighed and followed Claire to the back of the Church, where Matt stood. He smiled gallantly when he saw her, quickly adjusting his red bow tie.

Brianna gave a small smile, her stomach turning flips. "There's the lovely bride-to-be," Matt greeted, wrapping one arm around her. Brianna loved when he was in a good mood; it was almost worth all of those other days.

"What'dya need, Matt?" Brianna asked, her whole body beginning to vibrate with excitement.

"Oh, I just wanted to make sure you were ready…" he seemed distracted by something behind her. Brianna glanced over her shoulder.

"There's nothing there! People keep looking at me like there's something there!" Brianna huffed.

"You look beautiful," Matt whispered, holding her face close to his. Brianna smiled, readjusting his crooked bow tie.

A woman screamed outside, and Mat held Brianna tighter. Claire bolted through the huge wooden doors of the church, a look of panic across her piggish face. "There—there's a _huge_ pterodactyl thing flying around outside!"

Brianna broke free of Matt's arms and sprinted outside, holding up her dress as she ran. Sure enough, there were several reptilian creatures circling above. One of them saw her and began plunging towards the Earth.

Suddenly, a blue police box appeared beside her, and an arm pulled her inside a second before the creature caught her.

Brianna looked around her, wide-eyed. "It's another dimension. Brilliant!"

A man with spiky brown hair and black glasses held her wrist, looking into her eyes. "Careful, those things can kill you stone dead in a second. Not even that. A millisecond. No. Not even _that_. A—"

A short woman with bright red hair playfully slapped him. "Doctor, she gets it!" Her face instantaneously darkened when she saw Brianna's face. "Doctor, this is very, extremely, bad. Aren't those Reapers outside? I'm pretty sure this is a paradox big enough to keep 'em busy for weeks!"

The Doctor observed Brianna's wedding dress. "Yup, you're right there. Our wedding was on the Oodsphere, and your dress was purple, so this must be an alternate reality. We should really be leaving, then."

As the man talked, Brianna began to recognize his face. "Wait—you're the bloke who was strangled by that statue thing! Some kind of angel…"

The red-haired woman exchanged a glance with the Doctor. "_Weeping_ Angel?"

Brianna nodded. "Yeah, that was it."

The Doctor's face darkened. "Hm, I'm dead in this universe. That _can't_ be good. Br-I mean, _Donna_, we better be going now." He led Brianna outside, waving his sonic screwdriver at the creatures. They flew off, and the Doctor and his blue box vanished.

Brianna blinked, shrugged, and returned to the church. Matt was standing in the aisle, eyes wide and mouth agape. "What—what were those things?" he queried, pointing a shaky finger in the general direction in which they'd flown away.

"I've got absolutely no idea," Brianna admitted, "But that was a hell of a lot of fun."

(a year and a half later)

Brianna sat in her favorite chair by the large window in the living room, watching the rain slide down the glass. Matt was at work, as was Lily, and her mum was out with friends. She sighed, and returned her attention to the half-completed sketch in her notepad. Matt would never approve if he knew what she was drawing. But that was precisely why she was doing it now, when she was alone. She was now filling in the features in the man's face, details that she shouldn't have remembered but did. Shading in the shadow under his eyes, she stared into the face of the man who'd been murdered by a stone statue, and then miraculously reappeared on her wedding day.

Suddenly, there was a wail from the crib across the room. Brianna sighed again, slowly stood up, and tiredly lifted her newborn daughter into her arms. Little Angie looked nothing like Brianna or Matt: she had rounder features, sparkling green eyes, and a little tuft of bright orange hair. Her twin sister Faye didn't resemble her parents, either, but had wide hazel eyes, light brown hair, and a round little nose.

**Hm, those descriptions sound familiar…cough, **_**Brianna's future regenerations**_**, cough.**

Just as Angie quieted down, Faye began, and so it continued in an increasingly demanding cycle. Brianna was developing dark circles under her eyes, and she found herself dozing off while rocking the babies to sleep every now and then.

As she soothed Faye, Matt arrived home, hanging up his tweed jacket on the coat rack. He made his way in Brianna's direction, but paused by the window, bending down to pick up her sketch. His face turned a familiar shade of red, and he rumpled up the paper and threw it violently at Brianna.

"Who's this?" he demanded angrily, fists clenched at his sides as he stormed up to Brianna. Brianna held Faye closer to her instinctively.

"He's no one, Matt, just the man who I saw murdered that day… I can't get his face out of my head.."

His face was now inches from hers as he snarled, "No one, is he? 'Cause I think he's your secret lover, the reason why neither of our daughters bares any likeness to me!" he raised his hand, but Brianna shrunk away, her eyes pleading.

"No, Matt, not while I'm holding the baby. Please, Matt, don't!" but he ignored her cries, bringing his palm down across her face, leaving a fresh red imprint of his hand. She darted to the crib, lifted Angie out, and hastily wrapped both infants in a thick quilt. Without further hesitation, she left the apartment, carrying her daughters close to her chest to shield them from the September gales.

"You okay?" a concerned voice questioned from behind her. Brianna turned her head, surprised to see the blond woman from the day of her engagement.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just taking my babies out for a walk." Brianna lied quickly, forcing a terribly fake smile.

The woman appeared unconvinced. "Yeah, a nice walk in the middle of the windiest day of the year. And I'm sure that bruise on your face is just fine, too."

Brianna swallowed hard, trying desperately to hold in her sobs. "My husband… he beat me again… but this time I was holding one of the babies, and he didn't even care. I'm not putting them in danger anymore."

The woman looked sadly at the whimpering infants. "Poor things. And your life wasn't supposed to work out like this, not at all. Tell you what, Brianna, come with me."

Brianna looked warily at the woman. "I don't even know you."

The woman smiled. "I'm Rose. Trust me, I'm an old friend of the Doctor's… although that would hold no meaning for you anymore, would it? Listen," her voice grew earnest as she leaned towards Brianna, "You were meant to be touched by that stone angel, and it would send you into the future, where you'd meet the Doctor. But instead, he came here and was killed by it. You were destined to travel with him, to save so many lives, whole galaxies together. And get married." She smiled wistfully.

"Yeah, I'm not such a big fan of the whole marriage thing anymore," Brianna laughed, without a hint of humor.

Rose shook her head. "I don't blame you for feeling that way. But the world isn't right any more. The whole _universe_ is messed up now, because the Doctor died. Only you can truly set it right again."

"H-how?" Brianna stammered, beginning to feel uncomfortable. Yet, mention of the Doctor seemed to sooth some part of her subconscious, so she remained.

"You have to go back in time with me and stop yourself from doing whatever it was that led you away from the angel."

Brianna peered down at the two baby girls, who had drifted asleep. "What about them, Rose? What happens to them if I don't get back together with Matt?"

Rose rested a comforting hand on Brianna's shoulder. "They'll have never existed. Besides, they don't look like you or your husband because they were formed from the residual genes from your future selves, which were somehow erased—oh, I'm just blabbering, aren't I? I know it'll be hard, sacrificing them, but they _aren't real_. None of this should be real. Set time right, Brianna."

Brianna took a deep breath, wiped the hot tears from her eyes, and nodded. "I'll do it. Whatever it takes."

Rose brought Brianna to the headquarters of her little band of time travelers fighting in the Doctor's name.

Brianna was greeted warmly, but they quickly got down to business. "We're gonna send you back now, to that day, okay?" Rose informed Brianna. Brianna handed Rose the babies, and stepped into the center of the circle of mirrors. She closed her eyes in horror when she saw the giant beetle on her back, but focused on her mission. She opened her eyes to find herself right outside of Matt's apartment, on the fateful day when she had decided to stay. Bracing herself, Brianna grabbed the past Matt walking up the stairs of the building, and glared icily into his eyes.

"Listen, Matt," she said, "I want you to go to your apartment, and break up with me. I've been dating someone behind your back. Bye, then."

She stalked off in the other direction, and sprinted out into the street, crying as she saw her babies vanish from Rose's arms.

"BRIANNA!" shouted Rose. Brianna turned her head, just as the truck barreled into her.

Brianna sat up, blinking. "What _are_ you?" the fortune teller asked her, recoiling in horror, "So powerful!"

"Time Lord, currently looking for my Time Lord husband. Thanks for the free fortune, but I like my life the way it is, thanks." She strolled out of the tent, leaving the giant beetle dead on the floor.

Her life may be a mess at the moment, but she couldn't help but be thankful for the wonderful times she'd already shared with the Doctor. After all, she thought, smiling at her own pun, she'd been touched by an angel.


End file.
